Howlin' T-Wolf

Los Angeles Clippers (8-4) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (6-8)

Last game: Minnesota: W, 93-85 vs Detroit, Los Angeles: W, 91-89 vs Dallas

The Timberwolves take on Chris Paul for the first time since he left New Orleans.

The Timberwolves struggled early but finished strong on Wednesday, defeating Detroit behind a 20 point, 17 rebound performance from Kevin Love. The Wolves lost every quarter besides the fourth to the Pistons, crushing Detroit 29-14 in the final frame.

The Clippers beat the Mavericks on Wednesday on a last second three by Chauncey Billups, but it was Mo Williams who carried the CP3-less Clips to a victory, scoring 26 points off the bench. Williams was a torrid 11-15 from the field, and the Clippers are first in their division, leading the cross-town rival Lakers by percentage points.

The Key Questions

#1. Soooo…no Chris Paul tonight?

Nope. CP3 has marked Sunday as his anticipated return from a hamstring injury, meaning the Clippers will be starting Chauncey Billups at point guard. Chauncey, of course, is a very capable point guard, but he isn’t Chris Paul. Nobody is.

#2. Can the Wolves continue to get this kind of bench production?

I’ll admit: once Rubio became a starter, I worried about Minnesota’s bench. Were they just overachieving because they had such a great passer working with them? Would they struggle to score the ball when Rubio spent most of his minutes as a starter? Fortunately, this doesn’t seem to be the case. Against Detroit, the bench was +24 for the game. Bringing back JJ Barea, of course, has helped considerably, but Wayne Ellington seems to have snapped out of his early season shooting slump as well, Tolliver was 50% from downtown against the Pistons, and even Pek got into the action, scoring 11 points.

#3. How many teams have a lower winning percentage than Minnesota right now?

11. I’ll let that sink in for a minute: there are eleven teams in the NBA whose records are worse than Minnesota’s. And considering the early schedule Minnesota was stuck with, being two games under .500 is a fairly attractive prospect, thank you very much. Has mediocrity ever felt this good?

The Key Matchups

Let’s start with the obvious: Kevin Love vs Blake Griffin. Neither player is especially good at defense, Love because he doesn’t enjoy giving up rebounding position to play help defense, Griffin because (as was pointed out in this interesting Hoopspeak.com article) he has surprisingly short arms. Love’s deficiency is a little less detrimental in one on one post defense, so it will be interesting to see if he has a small advantage tonight.

It’s easy for the uneducated basketball fan to look at Rubio and assume that he will struggle against a player like Billups, considering that Rubio is a rookie and Billups has been in the NBA since James Naismith cut a hole in the bottom of the first peach basket. But Rubio has shown great poise against some really excellent point guards so far this year, and honestly, I feel a little deprived that we won’t get to see him take on Chris Paul yet. Ah well.

Minnesota’s bench runs much deeper than the Clippers, who had five players with 30+minutes against the Mavericks, while Minnesota had just two against Detroit. This would matter more, of course, if both teams hadn’t had a night off in between. Still. The Wolves should be much less gassed at the end of the game.

The Outlook

The Clippers are a good team, but not a great one, at least not yet. This will be an excellent test for the Timberwolves. If Minnesota plays well, they could certainly run their record to 7-8 and be THISCLOSE to .500. But if they play like they did for three quarters against the Pistons, this game probably won’t be close.

Game starts at 9:30 pm on (HOLY CRAP THE WOLVES ARE ON) ESPN.

The Timberwolves need to pay Kevin Love. Like, yesterday.

From The Pioneer Press:

Look for the Timberwolves to offer Kevin Love a $60 million, four year contract extension within in the next eight days.

Love, 23, who is playing for $4.6 million this season, can become a restricted free agent after the season unless he signs an extension before Jan. 25. If he opts for free agency, the Wolves would have the right to match any outside offer. Love also can return to Minnesota in 2012-13 for $6.1 million and become an unrestricted free agent after the season.

Taking a quiet moment to collect myself. Massaging my temples gently. A deep breath.

Ok, Kahn. WHAT (SLAP) THE (SLAP) HELL (SLAP) ARE (SLAP) YOU (SLAP) DOING?!

It’s a pretty basic NBA principle: you don’t kill your team by overpaying stars. You kill your team by overpaying bad players. That’s why the amnesty clause was included in the latest CBA: to help out teams who spent $35 million on Travis freaking Outlaw. That’s also why you weren’t about to see the Lakers amnesty Kobe, even though he was the biggest (by far) contract on their books. He’s a great player, and paying great players a lot of money is good NBA business. Minnesota’s roster is full of decent, affordable contracts. They can afford to give Kevin Love the maximum.

It is ESSENTIAL to Minnesota’s continued development as a team that they keep Kevin Love. He is the face of this franchise (sorry Ricky), a 23 year old all star who scores in the paint, hits open three pointers, rebounds better than anyone in the league, and is probably three years from hitting the absolute prime of his career.

Now, I understand that 4 years/$60 million is essentially the max minus a year. But it’s $20 million that Kevin Love isn’t guaranteed to get. Since Minnesota could offer him another year, why wouldn’t Love feel a little low-balled? And why would he sign a contract with a team that is low-balling him?

The long and the short of this whole situation is that the Timberwolves can’t afford to lose their best scorer just when their roster has begun to look respectable again. Minnesota’s fans have suffered through a series of devastatingly awful seasons. They have rallied around this young, entertaining team on the idea of hope. If Minnesota loses Kevin Love, they lose that hope.

And THAT is something they truly can’t afford.

Sacramento Kings (4-9) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (4-8)

Last game: Minnesota: L, 93-91 vs Atlanta (ugh), Sacramento: L, 99-60 (woof) vs Dallas.

You may have heard about this other rookie getting a lot of hype...

The Timberwolves blew an 18 point third quarter lead against the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday, wasting another offensive outpouring from Kevin Love. Atlanta’s zone defense utterly fooled the Wolves, and two late free throws by Ivan Johnson were the difference.

The Kings scored a stunningly low point total of 60 against the Mavericks, the lowest scoring output by an NBA team since 1991. They were blown out by almost 40.

INJURY UPDATE: Martell Webster just tweeted he has been cleared to begin practicing. Great news, we wish him a speedy recovery, and look forward to his return to action.

The Key Questions

#1. What did the Wolves learn about zone defenses on their day off?

For all the rhetoric about how the Wolves are a young team who will blow leads, it wasn’t youth that killed Minnesota. In fact, it was Minnesota’s youth and energy that was killing Atlanta in the third quarter. But when Atlanta brought a zone, Minnesota struggled mightily.

Two things would really help the Wolves against a zone. First, Minnesota will clearly benefit when Barea and Beasley come back from their injuries (which won’t be tonight). The Wolves need someone who can get to the hoop and score around a group of defenders. Second, the Wolves outside shooting has GOT to improve. Wayne Ellington got hot in the 4th quarter against Atlanta, but for much of the game, Rubio and Love were the only offensive options. I’ve talked about this before, but what the Wolves desperately need is someone who can hit three pointers from the corner, a la Richard Jefferson for San Antonio this year. Rubio would add 4 of 5 assists to his total every game just by setting that person up.

And, to get back to my original point, improved outside shooting would seriously help against a a zone defense. Fortunately, Sacramento’s defense is one of the worst in the league, 29th in points allowed per game.

#2. Will Rubio start again?

The smart money says “yes” since the Wolves got off to a good start with Rubio in the game on Saturday. Rubio’s starting numbers, 15 ppg and 10.5 assists, are superb, and he has played good tough defense, although Jeff Teague actually punished him a bit with his speed. Still. Expect to see Rubio get his first start at the Target Center. On a related note…

#3. How many alley-oops will Rubio throw tonight?

The Kings allow a ton of points, and they don’t help out much on defense. Rubio is very capable of making bad defenses pay. Add in a ton of extra minutes from his role as a starter and a desire to show off for the home crowd, and we could be in for some very entertaining work from Rubio.

The Key Matchups

DeMarcus Cousins could cause some problems for the Wolves tonight, if he’s playing well. Good DeMarcus posts up, has silky sweet moves and a really nice tough around the basket. Good DeMarcus bulls his way to the basket, grabs offensive rebounds, and plays engaged, solid defense. Bad DeMarcus is disengaged, doesn’t post up enough, and shoots too much from midrange. We’ll see which one shows up.

Tyreke Evans has been playing some shooting guard with Jimmer Fredette at point this season, and he could also do some damage at that position. Evans is quick, fluid, and very strong. If the Wolves can force him into taking jumpers, they will be in better shape, but if he gets to the hoop, he might cause some havoc.

On the other hand, Jimmer won’t challenge Rubio as long as Rubio stays out on him and keeps a hand in his face, and the Kings have no one who can match up on Love if he continues to play well.

The Outlook

It would be great to see the Wolves win this game. Winning games you should win is a mark of improvement for a rebuilding team like Minnesota, and Sacramento is a team they should beat. The Kings have talent, but they are struggling right now and the Wolves need to take advantage.

Game starts at 7 pm on Fox Sports North

I just…I can’t…gahhhhhhhhhhhhh.

It was the third quarter, and Minnesota was up by 18. I was cracking my knuckles, totally excited to write this recap. I was contemplating the best adjective for Kevin Love’s performance (”should I go with ’scintillating’ or ‘intriguing?’”). I was imagining that this time the Wolves really would put the game away, that they would secure a big win against a good team. With their offense flowing, shots falling, and the defense stifling the Hawks, I thought the Wolves were about to finally learn how to put their foot on the throat of an opponent and step down.

THIS! THIS! FOREVER THIS!

I was, of course, very wrong.

The Hawks ended the quarter on a 10-0 run, cutting the lead to single digits. Every three seemed to be falling. The Wolves couldn’t score against a zone (leading to Rubio’s most Rubio quote ever: “We didn’t know how to offense the zone.”). The legendary Ivan Johnson, with some help from his teammates, finally managed to slow down Love. Suddenly, the Wolves were pretty clearly going to lose.

This is what happens to teams with only two scorers. Rubio has proven himself to be more capable of scoring than we could have dreamed possible. Love has been dominant, and he showed tonight exactly how unstoppable he can be if he works to get shots down low rather than settling for long jumpers.

But with Beasley and Barea out of the game, the Wolves had nobody who could create their own shot. Worse: they had nobody who could hit an open shot when Rubio created it for them. Minnesota went icy cold, the Hawks capitalized by making every big three, and eventually the lead became a deficit, the final points coming from Ivan Johnson hitting two big free throws to give Atlanta their final margin.

And yes, I do think that Johnson fouled Love on that final play. He appeared to lower his shoulder and crash forward into Love’s chest, knocking him flying. Love dressed it up a bit by throwing his arms out, but there was clearly contact.

That being said, the Wolves should not have lost this game, and it wasn’t thanks to the officials that they did, no matter what Anthony Tolliver might think on Twitter. They lost because of their shoddy execution down the stretch, and some very, very hot shooting by the Hawks.

On to the bullets:

• If there is any good news to be gleaned from tonight, it’s this: Minnesota would have won if they could have figured out that damn zone. That’s a concrete problem that Adelman can make them improve on in practice. The Wolves don’t have to try and fix some mental road block, they have to figure out a way to beat a zone. This is something a good coach like Adelman should be able to do.
• I’ve been critical of Love’s shot selection, so let me clarify: I have no problem with Love shooting jumpers. He is very good at them. I have a problem with him SETTLING for jumpers. I want him to make them a supplement to his post game, rather than the focus of his offensive weaponry. In the last two games, he has done that, and he has gone for 30 in both. This is not a coincidence.
• Jeff Teague did something that Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, and John Wall all failed to do this season: he punished Rubio on offense with his speed. Rubio really made the other three work for their points by cleverly moving his feet, but Teague seemed to be able to get by Rubio at will, which was startling and a little worrisome. Was Rubio feeling tired after playing 44 minutes against New Orleans? It’s hard to say. But Teague definitely didn’t seem to struggle against him.
• I love watching Dominique Wilkins highlights on YouTube (here, have some), so when I saw he was doing the Hawks color commentary, I decided to watch the game on mute so I wouldn’t come out quite as full of hatred as I did last night. And it worked!
• On my wish list for the Wolves offensively: a player who can reliably hit a corner three. Love creates so much havoc in the post and Rubio forces defenses to help whenever he drives, but Minnesota often fails to capitalize because the defense doesn’t need to respect the shooters. Tonight for example: Minnesota shot 4-21 from three point range. 19% folks. That will almost never get it done.
• On the topic of missing three pointers: Wes Johnson. Today I was busily tweeting about how Wes is awful, can’t ever hit his shots, and all the usual things when Rubio tossed a beautiful floating alley-oop to Wes who finished it off with style. It was the second time in two days that Rubio made that pass to Wes. If Minnesota could just figure out a way to insert him into the game right before Rubio makes that pass and take him out immediately afterward, we would be in business. But unfortunately, Wes continues to miss open threes from all over the perimeter, wasting nice passes from Rubio that find him completely open. Sigh.
• But for real though: in that last quarter, Ivan Johnson destroyed Kevin Love. Take a look and compare Love’s shot chart in the third and fourth quarters, remembering that Johnson guarded Love for much of the fourth. The worst part? Johnson had some trash to talk about Love after the game: “My thing is I don’t watch basketball, so I don’t know who anybody is…but even if I did (know who Love is) I wouldn’t be afraid.” This, of course, begs the question: what DOES Ivan Johnson fear? Sharks? Tanks? Nuclear missiles? ANYTHING?
• Luke Ridnour has played two bad games right in a row after his career night against Chicago. Last night he was 4-13 with one assist, but those numbers don’t capture how uncomfortable it felt watching him run the offense when Rubio sat down. Tonight was the same story: 3-8 from the field with two assists and two turnovers. It’s not just that he missed shots, it’s that the shots he missed were big ones, potential momentum changers. It’s that when he’s missing shots, he’s essentially useless for Minnesota, since they clearly don’t have him in for defensive purposes.
• I mentioned in my preview how important getting off to a quick start would be for the Wolves, and it certainly worked to their favor until those disastrous late game runs by the Hawks. Minnesota came out swinging at the beginning, which really felt like a vast improvement. It would be nice to see that trend continue.
• Not a whole lot of playing time for Derrick Williams in Michael Beasley’s absence, as he saw just 8 minutes tonight. That can’t be easy on a rookie.

That should roughly sum things up. Minnesota’s next two games are against Detroit and Sacramento, both very winnable. And if anybody knows how to offense a zone, Ricky could use some pointers.

Atlanta Hawks (8-4) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (4-7)

Last game: Minnesota: W (!) 87-80 vs New Orleans, Atlanta: W, 111-81 (!!) vs Charlotte

Injury report: Wolves: Malcolm Lee (Back), Brad Miller (Knee), JJ Barea (Ankle), Michael Beasley (Foot).

Hawks: Al Horford (Shoulder), Marvin Williams (Ankle), Tracy McGrady (Back).

The Wolves face a tough test on the road against Atlanta tonight.

Minnesota won last night, which is noteworthy, although perhaps less noteworthy considering the team they beat and the player who was sitting out (Eric Gordon). The Wolves forced their way to the free throw line with abandon, which ended up being more than the difference as they knocked off the Hornets on the road.

The Hawks won by 30, which is noteworthy, over Charlotte, which makes it slightly less noteworthy (patterns!). Josh Smith dropped 30 on the overmatched Bobcats as Atlanta moved to 8-4 on the season, good for 5th in the East, and only half a game behind three other Eastern Conference teams.

The Key Questions

#1. Which Atlanta team is going to show up tonight?

So far this season, the Hawks have looked awesome against the Bulls, Nets, Heat, Wizards, and Bobcats. They have looked awful against the Bulls, Heat, Bobcats, and Rockets. Another year, another bipolar Atlanta team. Need evidence of their bipolar-ness? The Hawks beat Miami with Wade, LeBron and Bosh, then a lost three days later to Miami with LeBron and Wade both sitting out.

But take a look at that chart at the top of the preview again. That differential between offensive and defensive efficiency? 7.9. That’s good for third in the NBA, behind just Chicago and Philadelphia. And unlike Philly, Atlanta’s schedule so far has been full of tough teams, including Miami and Chicago twice, and Indiana. This is a good team, potentially a great one.

Of course, the Hawks are also completely capable of coming out flat and losing to a bad team like Houston, so it really is a toss up. Hopefully the second night of a back to back will affect them mentally.

#2. Can the Timberwolves avoid a slow start?

A slow start doomed the Wolves against Chicago. It almost doomed them last night against the Hornets. Atlanta is much more like Chicago. If the Wolves come out of the gate shooting badly and turning the ball over, Atlanta could certainly break out and put Minnesota away early.

#3. Who guards Joe Johnson?

Last night Ridnour started at shooting guard. Joe Johnson would eat him like a buffet. Will the Wolves let Ridnour guard him to start the game and hope for the best? Or, more likely, will Wes be put back at the 2? Either way, Johnson presents a fairly serious matchup problem for the Wolves. Which, leads us to…

The Key Matchups

So we’ve covered Johnson.

Kevin Love vs Josh Smith will be pretty fascinating. Both players much prefer to take outside jumpers rather than posting up. Both players are good rebounders, though for different reasons. Smith is hyper athletic, while Love positions himself well.

Rubio may be tired after last night…he got well over 40 minutes of action for the first time last night. We’ll see if he gets as many minutes tonight with a night off coming on Sunday.

But most importantly…Zaza! Darko! Iiiiiit’s the NBA on League Pass!

The Outlook

I’ve been looking forward to this game all weekend, actually. While many of you will be watching Tim Tebow (and I understand), I’ll be watching one of the more intriguing Timberwolves games of the year. The Hawks are a tough test, but if the Wolves play to their potential, they can win this game.

Of course, if they don’t play to their potential, they could easily lose by 30 as well. Either way, I think we will learn something about the Wolves tonight.

All 3 of us who will be watching.

Game starts at 6 on League Pass

Let’s be clear about one thing: it is encouraging that the Timberwolves, despite their best efforts, eventually won. 4-7 is clearly better than 3-8. (ANALYSIS!)

If Love hadn't forced the issue inside, this might be a very different recap.

Kevin Love was a juggernaut down low, crashing around and drawing contact incessantly, forcing the overmatched, whistle-happy officials to make a decision. Eventually, the officials seemed to decide that they couldn’t very well NOT continue to call fouls, since the same contact was happening on every single play. The result? Love himself took as many free throws (18) as the entire Hornets team, and made all but one. Love’s final line, 35 points and 14 rebounds, is so Dwight Howard-y (minus the FT percentage, of course) that the box score itself has an enormous pair of shoulders.

Rubio started his first game as a Timberwolf and played well, dishing out 9 assists (10 if you ask ESPN’s Zach Harper, and he’s 100% correct). Two of the ones that counted were notably beautiful, one up high to Wes Johnson for a slam (more on that later), one sneaky and behind the back to Wayne Ellington for a three. Both are conveniently captured here.

And of course, once again, the Wolves won, eventually securing an 87-80 victory against a pesky New Orleans team that refused to go down easily.

So why am I feeling so negative at the moment?

Let’s start with this: New Orleans is not a good basketball team. Worse, they were without their best offensive threat (Eric Gordon, out with a sore knee). And yet, the game was very much up for grabs until the final 1:30, after Jarret Jack hesitated a fraction of a second too long and clanked a three. Love grabbed the rebound, was fouled, and the Wolves began to pull out of reach with the only weapon they were able to capitalize on all night: free throws.

But the Wolves once again failed to demonstrate any kind of killer instinct, after leading by 14 in the third quarter and failing to push the game out of reach.

New Orlean’s go-to player was Emeka Okafor, who had Anthony Randolph figured out on the block the way Stephen Hawking has figured out basic algebra. When Adelman got sick of it and put in Love, Okafor kept several possessions alive by simply swatting the ball back out to the perimeter where his guards were stationed. When Kevin Love plays for your team, you begin to forget what it’s like when the other team gets too many offensive rebounds, but Minnesota fans remembered last night, as the Hornets came away with 19 total.

Let’s get to some bullet points before I start bleeding from the eyes.

• Speaking of bodily harm, the Hornets’ League Pass announcers had me grinding my teeth into bits by the third quarter. They are the worst I’ve ever heard, which is saying something, because I watch entirely too much League Pass. They can’t even be bothered to pretend to be objective, and listening to them attempt to sell each other’s jokes is like listening to a bad sitcom with an overenthusiastic laugh track. Example: “The real double-double record is 227 by Wilt Chamberlain, but I don’t think Kevin Love will quite get there.” “No, I hear what you are saying, HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.”
• In my 4th quarter notes: “Don’t forget: refs aren’t deciding this game for either team. But they are disrupting the flow.” This was one of those weird games where fans of both teams would leave angry at the refs, and both groups would have a valid case. The Hornets could complain that the refs were calling picky fouls, which vastly benefited Minnesota’s offensive strategy (which, after a brief third quarter run of hot shooting, amounted to give Kevin Love the ball and hope he gets hacked). The Timberwolves could complain that the Hornets got several very fishy foul calls down low, and that the refs missed a bad goaltending no-call that almost swung the momentum completely in New Orleans favor. Again, the refs didn’t decide the game in either direction, and wouldn’t have if the Hornets had won (that would have been Minnesota’s shooting percentage), but they helped make this game hard to watch.
• More from my notes: “WHY IS THIS TEAM SO STREAKY?!”
• Remember this summer, when David Kahn claimed he wanted this team to run even more? Not happening against New Orleans. The Wolves managed a paltry 5 points on the break, relying almost entirely on their half court sets for offense. Which of course, leads us to…
• The Wolves were terrible from the field. Just…awful. The Timberwolves PR team on Twitter (@Timberwolves_PR) pointed out that Minnesota’s 34.3% shooting from the field was the worst percentage in a win in T-Wolves history. It doesn’t get any prettier from three point range, 6-25 for 24%.
• Hang on, I’m not done complaining about Nawlinz’ announcers. As Okafor was destroying Minnesota, one of the announcers, who were inexplicably obsessed with the fact that it was Friday the 13th, kicked it to commercial with this beauty: “The only player in double digits…(clearly thinking hard)…doesn’t need a mask! (realizes that this makes no sense) Maybe the defenders do!” Ugh.
• Keep going? Alright, twist my arm. After Rubio nails a jumper: “You know, I think he’s much more dangerous as a guy getting ASSISTS rather than a guy shooting jumpers.” Really? Where are you getting this insider information? It couldn’t be from every scouting report on Rubio since he was 14 years old, could it? Furthermore, why are you discussing this after Rubio just nailed a mid-range jumper over one of your best defensive players? Then, a little later, as Rubio almost went flying into the scorer’s table after a loose ball: “I wasn’t going to let him get hurt. Or MAYBE I’ll let him get hurt, I don’t know, I’m thinking about it.” Classy, bro.
• Minnesota’s ball movement was another reason they struggled. Apart from Rubio’s 10 9 assists, the Wolves had just 2 from other players.

That should roughly cover things. Once again, the Wolves started off cold and had to dig their way back, which will be more difficult tonight against the Hawks, who are much, much better than New Orleans, even without Al Horford. But Jonah will be along later to give you every thing you need to know about that game.

For now? The Wolves are 4-7. At least they beat a team they should beat. Progress!

Our very own Kevin Love was featured on ESPN’s Sport Science, where he showed off his skills in boxing out under the hoop.

Chicago Bulls (8-2) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (3-6)

Last game: Minnesota: L, 97-87 vs Toronto, Chicago: W, 92-68 vs Detroit

The Timberwolves could not seem to find the range from anywhere last night, missing layups, threes, mid-range jumpers, and free throws with abandon. They also couldn’t stop Andrea Bargnani (ugh), who went off for a season high 31 points. Minnesota fell to the Raptors by 10, leaving fans wondering what might have happened if just a couple more shots had fallen.

The Bulls ripped into Detroit the same way they have been ripping into every other team this year. Chicago’s starters got a lot of rest (thanks a lot, Detroit) as they stretched their record to 8-2, second best in the Eastern Conference.

Injury report

Bulls: Richard Hamilton (questionable) groin, CJ Watson (out) dislocated elbow

Minnesota: Malcolm Lee (out) torn meniscus

The Key Questions

#1. What happened to Kevin Love yesterday?

3-16 from the field and 5-10 from the line are not Kevin Love numbers. Those are Michael Beasley in a Kevin Love suit numbers. (That joke hurt to write, so I hope you enjoyed it.) Love will matched up with Carlos Boozer today, who by rights SHOULD be more difficult than Amir Johnson. But Boozer is a mediocre rebounder, meaning Love might be able to body his way into the paint and get some easy put backs on offense. Boozer also might struggle trying to get out and guard Love from behind the arc. OPTIMISM!

#2. How many minutes will JJ Barea play?

Barea’s minutes had to be limited under doctor’s orders, right? Because he was literally the only player on the court for Minnesota who could create his own shot against Toronto. The Wolves will desperately need him tonight, especially if Bulls’ shooting guard Rip Hamilton is out.

#3. Will returning home help the Wolves shooting percentage?

You’ve heard the grisly numbers from the Toronto game, but even against Washington, some Wolves’ players struggled from the field. Love was under 50%, Rubio was 5-14, and Williams was 5-12. Wes Johnson did Wes Johnson-y things, going 2-8. Perhaps playing at home will help restore Minnesota’s confidence.

The Key Matchups

The Bulls are an absolute matchup nightmare for Minnesota.

Will the Wolves score more than 60 tonight? Because the offense has seriously struggled against every team not named Washington, and the Bulls give up the second fewest points per 100 possessions in the league. This could get really ugly, especially if Minnesota runs Luke Ridnour at the point for extended minutes. Ridnour has a lot of good qualities, but moving the ball against a good defense will be a struggle for him.

We covered Kevin Love/Carlos Boozer above, but Love might have to take some Joakim Noah duty as well when the Wolves go with their small ball lineup. Noah doesn’t score a ton( 7.3 ppg so far this season) but on defense, he will give Love fits.

Wes Johnson’s defense last night was solid, but tonight he’ll be matched up against a much more physical Luol Deng. Poor Wes. His confidence in his jumper seems to be completely gone, and it’s hard to blame him…that thing hasn’t been falling at all.

And I haven’t even mentioned Derrick Rose yet. Again, Ridnour will get killed by Rose. Ricky Rubio has shown he can really move his feet well against faster point guards, but he hasn’t faced an athletic point guard as skilled as Rose yet, which will be an interesting test.

The Outlook

Trying…desperately…to…say…something…positive…

Hey guys, teams on the third night of a back to back to back are undefeated so far this season! And the Bulls played last night! MORE OPTIMISM!

Maybe someone else feels better about this game than I do, but the best case scenario I can realistically predict is another moral victory of 8 points or less. And even in that case, it feels like everything would have to go right for the Wolves.

Tell your children to avert their eyes.

Toronto Raptors (3-5) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (3-5)

Last game: Minnesota: W, 93-72 vs Washington, Toronto: L, 97-62 vs Philadelphia

All eyes are on these three guys as the Wolves clash internationally this evening.

The Wolves won an easy game against a bad team yesterday afternoon against Washington, blowing out the Wizards. Minnesota (aided and abetted by Washington’s terrible offense) allowed just 72 points to the Wiz, who remained winless on the season, and exited the court to boos from the hometown fans.

The Raptors, after an encouraging .500 start that included a win against the Knicks, have lost their last two games in discouraging fashion, one to New Jersey (only a slightly better team than the Wizards), and one by 35 to the surprisingly good Sixers.

The Key Questions

#1. So how good is this offense without Michael Beasley?

You may have heard about this: the Wolves moved the ball much better yesterday Kevin Love was asked what was different about Minnesota’s offense after the Washington game. His response? “Mike being out? I’m just kidding.”

I really like Beasley, but as much as it pains me to say it, that isn’t a joke. Minnesota moved the ball so much better with him out of the lineup. Better yet: Derrick Williams got a bunch of minutes he wouldn’t have gotten if Beasley were healthy, and Williams performed really well, shooting 4-7 from three point range.

If Minnesota continues to play well offensively with Beasley out of the lineup, Adelman is going to have to take a long look at the Memphis and Cleveland games and decide just how much more experimentation with Beasley this team can take. No one doubts his potential, just his potential for reaching it.

#2. How will the Wolves react to the second night of a back to back…on the road?

This question is really an excuse to say that Toronto is much better than Washington. Offensively, they are far from amazing, but new head coach Dwane Casey has them playing much better defense. They are allowing 92.9 points per game, which is 10th in the league. Andrea Bargnani will score quite a bit. Jose Calderon is consistent.

In regards to the actual question, it doesn’t seem like fatigue will be too much of an issue for the Wolves. On their second night of a back to back against San Antonio, Minnesota played their best basketball of the season. There are a few more hours for them to rest, since yesterday’s game was at noon. And for all their improvements, Toronto is not San Antonio.

#3. Will JJ Barea be back?

Yes! Finally. Barea is expected to return against the Raptors, which will add some much needed ball handling and slashing offense to the Timberwolves repertoire. He has been sorely missed.

The Key Matchups

Rubio tweeted about being excited to play Toronto yesterday, saying “Take it easy, @josemcalderon8.” Apparently, they are good friends, and have gone out to eat already, with Calderon picking up the tab. I swear I’m not creeping (I’m totally creeping). Anyway, it will be interesting to watch Rubio’s flare vs Calderon’s calmer approach.

Amir Johnson is a solid rebounder and a decent defender, but he is no Kevin Love. Andrea Bargnani is actually a decent one on one post defender, but his help defense is horrible. This might allow for some sneaking post moves which might allow for some alley oops!

People have been clamoring for Rubio and Williams to start, but honestly, both players got 30 minutes against Washington, which was tied for 3rd on the team. We’ll see what happens.

The Outlook

The Timberwolves have plenty of talent to win this game, so if Minnesota shows up focused, there’s no reason they should lose. It’s impossible to predict how ready the Wolves will be to play at this point in the season, but this is a big part of the reason they hired Adelman, a coach who can get a young team mentally prepared for a tough season.

Also, this.

Yessssss. Can’t wait for tonight.

Game starts at 6 on Fox Sports North

A good heckler sitting nearby can make a bad game fun. A bad heckler can make a bad game nearly unbearable. Unfortunately, I had the latter sitting a few seats away from me at the Target Center on Friday.

Actually, this picture sums things up better than I ever could.

“Hey! Hey! Where’s LeBron? Hey Kyrie! Take your talents to South Beach! Hey guys! Where’s LeBron?!”

This continued through three quarters. Antawn Jamison finally turned, looked straight at him and, with an expression of calm disdain, pointed to the scoreboard.

“We’re winning,” he said, simply. And indeed they were. Convincingly.

Honestly, I have NOTHING good to say about the Timberwolves Friday night. All the hustle, enthusiasm, and excitement they played with earlier in the week against Dallas and San Antonio? Utterly absent. To better represent the effort the Wolves put forth, I really should stop all of my sentences half way through. But I’ll do the next best thing: a bullet point recap.

• Kevin Love may look like the lone bright spot for Minnesota, going off for 29 points and 14 rebounds, but honestly SOMEBODY had to score. The depressing thing is that Love has been the only player who can create a shot. He had a couple really nice post moves today and hit a few threes.
• For the second straight night, the Wolves simply could not score the ball. In the last nine quarters, the Wolves have topped 25 just once: the 4th against Memphis. Somewhere along the line, Minnesota seems to have forgotten how to shoot. The Wolves were 4-20 from behind the arc Friday night.
• One tell tale sign that the game was going badly was the way Adelman shuffled through his lineups in an attempt to find a group that would work together. Up until Friday night, Adelman allowed lineups to play together quite a bit in an attempt to work out their own kinks, but after a disastrous third quarter that saw a 7 point lead stretch to 14 with mostly the same lineup the whole way through, Adelman threw consistency to the winds and started shuffling players like a magician with a deck of cards.
• I’ve taken my fair share of cheap shots at Kyrie Irving from the safety of Twitter but he looked really good tonight. Sure, he turned the ball over some, but he played with confidence, shot well, directed the team, and didn’t seem much like a rookie. His attitude on the bench was good as well, standing and cheering for his teammates and handing out towels when players sat down. Just seems to be a good rookie who knows his role and is keen to play it.
• At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Anthony Tolliver took a three that missed badly but must appeared to go in to the PA announcer, who roared “ANTHONY TOLLIVER FOR THREEEEEEE!” The crowd around me cheered, but a confused official crew halted play.
  “COME ON! I’M PAYING FOR THIS! GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER!” screamed the incredibly clever heckler, who was apparently desperate to continue witnessing a rather awful basketball game.
  The officials went to the replay monitors and checked to see what had happened.
  “It’s because the Cavs didn’t take the ball out of bounds after Tolliver hit the three,” said the heckler, wisely.
• Beasley missed badly on a long two in the first half (BAD BEAS!) but he ran back down the court cursing himself and didn’t take another truly bad shot all game. He seemed a little more self aware. On one hand, this is a problem because he isn’t a good passer, so when he drives and looks to pass he often turns it over. He should just try to take the ball to the basket and draw a foul. But it’s encouraging to see him recognizing his mistakes and taking steps to correct them. After some early poor shooting, he cut down on his shot attempts, only putting up 12 for the game. Unfortunately, any future progression may take a rather serious pause: a sprained foot suffered late in the 4th may sideline him for a while, according to Jerry Zgoda’s tweets post game.
• Speaking of Beasley, does anybody else cringe a little every time a player hits a contested long two? When Derrick Williams hit a very difficult shot in the first half, getting fouled and still draining a 20-footer, I was honestly worried he was just going to start gunning from that area. I think it’s Beas who has conditioned me to think that way.
• The Cavaliers have a really strange generational gap. They have lots of veterans and a few young guys, but very few players in between. It will be interesting to see if the veterans influence the rookies positively or if a gap develops between the two through a long season.
• Barea would have REALLY helped tonight. Minnesota desperately needed his ability to split the defense and get to the rim. The offense broke down time and time again because the entire team was made up of shooters who couldn’t get to the hoop against Cleveland’s bruising front line. Having Barea’s driving ability would have opened up the floor considerably.
• If you told me two weeks ago that the Wolves would come out of their first seven games 2-5, I wouldn’t have been surprised, but I would have assumed that the wins would have been against Milwaukee and Cleveland. If you told me that the Wolves were going to beat Dallas and San Antonio, I would have been really encouraged. But somehow after seeing Minnesota’s performance tonight, I’m not encouraged at all. A bad effort. A bad outing. Let’s sincerely hope it’s an anomaly.